I can't believe how well W is reading now. He has gone from the red to the green to the yellow Bob books in only a couple of weeks. He knows beginning digraphs (sh, ch, th, ph,) and ending ones, too (ing, nk, ight). He is even starting to understand silent e. He is showing a great interest in math - especially adding, subtracting, and patterns. He likes dot-to-dots, I Spy books, Bingo, and online games. I really think homeschooling will be best for him in a couple of years. Right now he enjoys the fun and playing of preschool, and will probably like Kindergarten as well since it's similar. He can go to school as long as that's where he wants to be. But the minute I see any unhappiness or resistance to learning I will not hesitate to take him right out. I would HS him now, but he is so looking forward to his new school with all the animals in it and the 2 playgrounds out back. It's ok. I feel comfortable with letting him choose.

K has been working on her website every day. She goes to other sites for background, sound, and pictures. She even put in all these cute add-ons, like a counter, a tagboard, and blinkies. She wants to learn HTML so badly, so I think I'll pick her up a how-to book this week. She finished school with an 87 average and plans on getting that up to a 95 next year so she can either get into the specialized high school she wants or get a scholarship to a great private high school.

J has been working on her website and blogging pretty often, too. She has been playing more games lately - board and online. I have noticed she has gotten very fast doing math in her head. That's interesting. Her essay for dance was handed in the other day. I think it came out nicely written and is just so her. I mean you read it and can just feel J's personality come through. We'll find out how she did in a couple of weeks. Since she's been out of school, I see she is focusing tons of energy on dance and the play. She takes these very seriously and gives her best all the time. And the learning that takes place from participating in these activities in invaluable.

We never got to the fireworks show at the park last night because of the rain. The show wasn't cancelled, but we didn't want to sit on wet grass for several hours. I was happy to realize that we could see all the fireworks from our living room window! How cool is that? Today B is gonna bbq in the backyard while the kids play in the pool. The 10'x4' blowup pool needs a cleaning. I'll give them a couple of sponges and some soapy spray. They love that. We'll probably be at my mom's til Monday or Tuesday. Long Island always has fun holiday stuff to do - we'll find it! I also need to get to the mall at some point. At least my apartment is sparkly clean and decluttered - one less thing to wory about! Have a great weekend! Happy Independence Day!!